Yarn package holder



Nov. 19, 1963 E. E. WEAVER 3,111,288

YARN PACKAGE HOLDER Filed Nov. 28, 1962 INVENTOR. Eugene E. Weaver ATTORNEY WITNESS United States Patent 3,111,283 YARN FAQIQAGE HGLDER Eugene E. Weaver, Qhattanooga, assigno by mesne assignments, to The Company, New torir,

.Y., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Nov. 28, 195.2, Ser. No. 2443,6533 4 Claire (Ci. 242-4295) The present invention relates to a yarn package holder and has for an object to provide such a device which is simple and economical.

By way of example and as an illustration of the use of the device in accordance with this invention in the operation of a tufting machine, the yarn that is used to form the pile in the fabric being tufted is drawn from yarn spools or packages which are disposed behind the machine and which are arrange such as to provide for drawing the yarn from the spool and leading it to the machine. Because the number of needles of a tufting machine may be in excess of one thousand and the consequent necessity for a proportionate number of yarn spools that must be located in reasonable proximity to the machine, it is customary to mount the yarn spools in creels. For mounting the yarn package in the creel, there is provided a holder for each individual yarn package.

One problem with a yarn package holder arises from the fact that the various yarn packages of different manufacturers vary as to size and configuration, i.e., the core may be cylindrical or conical and the dimensions thereof may vary significantly. There has heretofore been provided a universal yarn package holder which is adapted to receive virtually all current yarn packages, which holder consists essentially of a hub carrying three fingers pivotally mounted intermediate their ends and spaced equally about the hub and adapted to receive the yarn package, the universality of the holder being obtained through the pivotal mounting of the finger and the specific configuration of the fingers. The present invention is directed especially to such a yarn package holder, and particularly to the means for pivotally mounting the fingets on the hub.

Briefly, the yarn package holder in accordance with this invention comprises a hub on which a plurality of fingers are pivotally mounted intermediate their ends by means of a lug projecting laterally from the finger and seated in the bottom of a groove that is formed in one face of the slot in the hub in which the finger is seated. To hold the finger with the lug in the groove, and thereby to hold the same in assembled relation, there is provided a second lug spaced from the first lug longitudinally of the finger a distance that is less than the thickness of the hub and adapted to underlie the hub when in operative relation. The device is assembled initially by pivoting the finger about the first lug so that the secondlug is disposed outwardly of the edge of the hub, dropping the first lug into the groove, and then pivoting the same to its operative position wherein the second lug is disposed beneath the hub. When the device is thereafter assembled on a supporting rod, the rod prevents pivotal movement of the finger sufiicient to move the second lug from beneath the hub, and thus prevents the fingers from being disassembled from the hub.

In this manner there has been provided by the present invention, a yarn package holder that is very simple and economical. In the formation of the hub by casting, the groove may be obtained in eifect for no expense since it is formed in the casting operation. At the same time, the fingers may be planar and formed of sheet meal, and the lugs may be merely stamped therein. In contrast, normal pivot means would require a separate drilling operation to provide for the pivot pin, and the insertion and heading of the pivot pin to prevent displacement of it requires further separate operations. Not only has the manufacturing cost of the unit thus been reduced, but there is also obtained another advantage which effects a significant savings. With the present invention there is provided a knock-down construction which can be readily assembled when the holder is to be put into use. Thus, the holder can be packaged as a much smaller unit than the necessarily pre-assembled device using conventionfl pivot means for the fingers, all of which efiects a savings in storage and shipment.

Having in mind the above and other object that will be evident from an understanding or" this disclosure, the invention comprises the devices, combinations and arrangements of parts as illustrated in the presently preferred embodiment of the invention which is hereinafter set orth in such detail as to enable those skilled in the art readily to understand the function, operation, construction and advantages of it when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a yarn package holder constructed in accordance with this invention, and illustra. .g an exemplary yarn package in phantom outline.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of the yarn package holder of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially on the line 33 of FIG. 2.

With reference to the drawings, there is illustrated a yarn package holder comprising a hub ll having an axial bore 2 for receiving a supporting rod 3 upon which the device is adapted to be mounted and on which it is secured by a set screw 4.

The hub 1 has what may be termed for convenience an upper surface 5, a lower surface 6, and side wall 7, which could of course be continuous but which, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention, comprises the outermost surfaces of radially extending fins 8.

The fins S are equally spaced angularly about the axis of the hub, which is the axis of the bore 2. Extending inwardly from the sidewall 7 of each fin 8 is a slot 9 having opposed faces 16 and ii that are parallel to a plane passing through the axis of the hub. In the face it) there is formed a groove 12 which extends inwardly or" the hub from the surface 5 in a direction substantially parallel to the axis of the hub and radially of the hub is disposed inwardly of the edge 7, and which terminates approximately midway between the faces 5 and 6 of the hub.

Seated in each of the slots 9 is an elongated finger 14- arranged generally lon itudinally parallel to the axis of the supporting rod 3, which finger is pivotally mounted intermediate its ends by means of a pivot lug 15 projecting laterally from the face of the finger and adapted to be seated in the bottom of the groove 12. The faces and ii of the slot 9 are spaced apart a distance sufiicient to accommodate the finger 14 but less than the combined thicknesses of the finger and the lug 15. Thus, when the finger 14 is disposed in the slot 9 with the lug i5 seated in the bottom of the groove 12, the finger 14 is adapted to be pivoted about the lug 15, which defines a pivot axis normal to the plane including the axis of the hub. With the hub in operative position on the supporting rod 3, the finger 14 will have a range of pivotal movement defined or limited by the engagement of the extremities of the finger with the supporting rod 3.

The finger i4 is also provided with a stop lug 16 that projects laterally from the face of the finger at a point spaced from the pivot lug 15 longitudinally of the finger 1d. The spacing or the lug 16 from the lug 15 is made slightly larger than the thickness of the hub I from the bottom of the groove 12 to the surface 6 so that when the finger 14 is within the range of pivotal movement determined by the engagement of the extremities thereof with the supporting rod 3, for example as illustrated in full lines in FIG. 3, the lug 16 underlies the surface 6 of the hub 1 and permits pivotal movement of the finger about the lug 15 but prevents displacement or endwise movement of the finger in the direction to remove the lug 15 from the groove 1'2.

The spacing of the lug 15 from the lug 16, the thickness of the huh I from the bottom of the groove 1'2 to the surface 6, and the distance that the groove 12 is disposed from the sidewall 7 are also interrelated in that the lug 16 remains beneath the hub 1 when the finger is within the range of pivotal movement but at the same time, when the finger is pivoted to move the upper portion of the finger through the space occupied by the supporting rod as seen in phantom lines in FIG. 3, which is possible when the hub is not on the supporting rod, the lug 16 is disposed beyond the sidewall '7 of the hub 1. Thus, when the hub 1 is not on the supporting red, the fingers can be readily assembled or disassambled with respect to the hub 1, and when the hub is subsequently placed on the supporting rod, the fingers are locked against disassembly.

Numerous alterations of the structure herein disclosed will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art. However, it is to be understood that the present disclosure relates to a preferred embodiment of my invention which is for the purposes of illustration only and not to be construed as a limitation of the invention. All such modifications which do not depart from the spirit of the invention are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus set forth the nature of the invention, what I claim herein is:

1. A yarn package holder comprising a hub having a bore axially thereof for receiving a supporting rod and a plurality of slots extending inwardly thereof toward said bore and disposed in angularly spaced relation about the axis of said hub, each of said slots having opposed faces disposed parallel to planes including the axis of said hub, a finger adapted to be disposed in each of said slots, and means for mounting each of said fingers in a respective one of said slots for pivotal movement about an axis intermediate the ends of the finger and normal to said plane including the axis of the hub comprising a lug projecting laterally from said finger, said opposed faces of said slot being spaced apart a distance adequate to accommodate the finger but less than the combined thicknesses of said finger and said lug, and a groove in one of the opposed faces of said slot for receiving said lug.

2. A yarn package holder comprising a hub including an upper surface, a lower surface having a bore axially thereof for receiving a supporting rod, said hub having a plurality of slots extending inwardly thereof toward said bore and disposed in angularly spaced relation about the axis of said hub, each of said slots having opposed faces disposed parallel to planes including the axis of said hub, a finger adapted to be disposed in each of said slots, and means for mounting each of said fingers in the respective slot for pivotal movement about an axis intermediate the ends of the finger and normal to said plane including the axis of the hub comprising a lug projecting laterally from said finger, said opposed faces of said slot being spaced apart a distance adequate to accommodate the finger but less than the combined thicknesses of said finger and said lug, and a groove in one of the opposed faces of said slot and extending into said hub from said upper surface for receiving said lug.

3. A yarn package holder comprising a hub including an upper surface and a lower surface and having a bore axially thereof for receiving a supporting rod, said hub having a plurality of slots extending inwardly thereof toward said bore and disposed in angularly spaced relation about the axis of said hub, each of said slots having opposed faces disposed parallel to planes including the axis of said hub, a finger adapted to be disposed in each of said slots, and means for mounting each of said fingers in the respective slot for pivotal movement about an axis intermediate the ends of the finger and normal to said plane including the axis of the hub comprising a lug projecting laterally from said finger, said opposed faces of the slot being spaced apart a distance adequate to accommodate the finger but less than the combined thicknesses of said finger and said lug, a groove in one of the opposed faces of said slot and extending into said hub from said upper surface for receiving said lug, and means on said finger for engaging the lower surface of said hub for preventing displacement of said finger relative to said hub in a direction to remove said lug from said groove.

4. A yarn package holder comprising a hub including an upper surface and a lower surface and having a bore axially thereof for receiving a supporting rod, said hub having a plurality of slots extending inwardly thereof toward said bore and disposed in angularly spaced relation about the axis of said hub, each of said slots having opposed faces disposed parallel to planes including the axis of said hub, a finger adapted to be disposed in each of said slots, and means for mounting each of said fingers in the respective slot for pivotal movement about an axis intermediate the ends of the finger and normal to said plane including the axis of the hub comprising a lug projecting laterally from said finger, said opposed faces of the slot being spaced apart a distance adequate to accommodate the finger but less than the combined thicknesses of said finger and said lug, a groove in one of the opposed faces of said slot and extending into said hub from said upper surface for receiving said lug, said finger having a range of pivotal movement about said lug when disposed in operative position on a supporting rod and which range is defined by the engagement of the extremities of said finger with the supporting rod, and means on said finger for engaging the lower surface of said hub Within said range of pivotal movement for preventing displacement of said finger relative to said hub in a direction to remove said lug from said groove and for being moved clear of said lower surface upon pivotal movement of said finger outside of said range when said hub is not mounted upon the supporting rod.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

1. A YARN PACKAGE HOLDER COMPRISING A HUB HAVING A BORE AXIALLY THEREOF FOR RECEIVING A SUPPORTING ROD AND A PLURALITY OF SLOTS EXTENDING INWARDLY THEREOF TOWARD SAID BORE AND DISPOSED IN ANGULARLY SPACED RELATION ABOUT THE AXIS OF SAID HUB, EACH OF SAID SLOTS HAVING OPPOSED FACES DISPOSED PARALLEL TO PLANES INCLUDING THE AXIS OF SAID HUB, A FINGER ADAPTED TO BE DISPOSED IN EACH OF SAID SLOTS, AND MEANS FOR MOUNTING EACH OF SAID FINGERS IN A RESPECTIVE ONE OF SAID SLOTS FOR PIVOTAL MOVEMENT ABOUT AN AXIS INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS OF THE FINGER AND NORMAL TO SAID PLANE INCLUDING THE AXIS OF THE HUB COMPRISING A LUG PROJECTING LATERALLY FROM SAID FINGER, SAID OPPOSED FACES OF SAID SLOT BEING SPACED APART A DISTANCE ADEQUATE TO ACCOMMODATE THE FINGER BUT LESS THAN THE COMBINED THICKNESSES OF SAID FINGER AND SAID LUG, AND A GROOVE IN ONE OF THE OPPOSED FACES OF SAID SLOT FOR RECEIVING SAID LUG. 